Concern over flood maps running high in Marshfield

Many property owners in coastal communities will see their premiums increase under the National Flood Insurance Program due to expanded flood zones and water-elevation changes. An additional 2,000 Marshfield properties will now fall in a flood plain, requiring those with a mortgage to have flood coverage.

Dreams of retiring with an ocean view became a reality for Patricia and Michael Gendron when they moved into their Ocean Street home less than a week ago. But joy was short-lived for the Gendrons, who got a rude awakening Wednesday while chatting with real estate agents showing a home nearby.

The couple learned that the price of their mandatory flood insurance could skyrocket this fall due to changes in the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s flood maps – something the Gendrons knew nothing about.

“I’m a nervous wreck now. I can’t believe it,” Pat Gendron said.

Because the Gendrons have a mortgage on their seaside home, they are already required to have flood insurance to the tune of roughly $4,500 a year. Pat Gendron said the premium is “manageable,” but she worries that it will not be for long.

“We’re coming into this with no experience at all,” she said. “We’re shocked.”

Their disbelief is shared by other Marshfield and Scituate residents, even those accustomed to flood-zone issues.

The family that owns Haddad’s Ocean Cafe has seen plenty of flooded streets during the 76 years the cafe has called Brant Rock home.

So when the owners, brothers Chuck and Mitch Haddad, knocked down the old restaurant and built a new one last year, they took the flood risk into consideration.

In fact, to be on the safe side, the brothers had the $3.3 million restaurant built 2 feet higher than the elevation level set by the federal agency.

But the new FEMA flood maps that take effect this fall show the restaurant sitting 3 feet below the flood elevation.

“We went even further above what we had to, and thought we were doing the right thing, but now they’re telling us we’re below. It’s crazy,” Mitch Haddad said.

The owners face a pricey dilemma: either raise the building, hire scientists to appeal the maps or pay higher premiums for flood insurance.

Mitch Haddad said they have been told their premium could increase fivefold, costing as much as $30,000 a year.

“We’re not whining, but it’s frustrating,” he said. “We tried to be proactive.”

Many property owners in coastal communities will see their flood insurance premiums grow due to expanded flood zones and water-elevation changes on the new maps. An additional 2,000 Marshfield properties will fall in a flood plain, requiring those with a mortgage to buy insurance.

Marshfield Selectman Steve Robbins said he is surprised that the neighborhood across from the police station on Route 139 will be added to the flood zone because of its proximity to a marsh connected to the South River.

Kevin Broderick of 72 Chandler Drive is quite familiar with the marsh, seeing that it is in his backyard. He disagrees that it qualifies as a flood plain.

Page 2 of 2 - “I’ve been here since 1971, and the water has never come up to the back of the house,” he said.

Broderick said he isn’t too concerned about flood insurance because he owns his home outright.

But being in a flood zone could create problems if he ever sells, said Jack Conway real estate agents Laurie Montuori and Bill Flaherty, who broke the bad news to the Gendrons.

They said prospective buyers of a home in a flood plain could be discouraged by the high insurance costs.

“It could take a first-time home buyer right out of the market,” Montuori said.

Robbins, the selectman, said the map changes will have far-reaching consequences for the town, possibly stifling economic growth, reducing property values and changing the community’s aesthetics.

“These maps could have one of the most significant impacts on the town in years, or possibly ever,” he said.